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MADRID (Reuters) - Euro zone inflation should return to the European Central Bank's target of close to but below 2 percent between 2018 and 2019, ECB President Mario Draghi told Spanish newspaper El Pais on Wednesday.

"I would say that, despite a great deal of crisis over the last few years, we've maintained our route and predict that inflation will return to a level compatible with our target of a rate near 2 percent, between 2018 and 2019," Draghi said in an interview.

The euro zone's central bank has missed its inflation target for well over three years. It will release initial 2019 forecasts on Dec. 8 when it also updates earlier projections.